Mexico weekly ledger., 1887-11-03
DR.. Taimage's FIRST Cigar.

The time had come In my boyhood
which I thought demanded of me a
capacity to smoke. The old people OF
the household could neither abide the
sight nor the smell of the Virginia
weed. When ministers came there,
not by positive injunction, but by a
sort of instinct as to what would be
safest, they whitfield their pipes on the
back steps. If the house could not
stand sanctified smoke, it may be i'm.
sgined how little chance there was for
adolescent cigar-puffing.
BY some rare good fortune which
put in my hands three cents, I found
access to atobacco store. As the lid OF
the long, narrow, fragrant box opened,
and for the first time I owned a cigar,
my feelings of citation, manliness, SD
periority and anticipation can scarcely
be imagined, save by those who have
had the same sensation. When I put
the cigar to my lips, and stuck the
lucifer match to the end of the weed,
and commenced to pull with an en-.
ergy that brought every facial muscle
to Its utmost tension, my satisfaction
with this world wa SO great my tempt
alton was never to want to leave it.
The cigar did not burn well. 1t re-
CURED an amount of suction that
tasked my determination to the ut
most. You see that my worldly means
had limited me to a quality which cost
only three cents. But / had been
Taught that nothing great was ever
accomplished without an effort, and Sc
pulled away. Indeed, / had heard
my older brothers in their Latin lessons
say, onania gsue1 labor, which trans.
lated means, if you want to make
anything go you must scratch for it.
With these sentiments, l passed
down through the village street, and
out toward my co untry home. My
head did not feel exactly right, and
the street began to rock from side to
side, so that it became rather uncer.
tain to me which side IF the street !
~as on. So | crossed over, but found
myself on the same side / was on be-
fore crossed over. Indeed, I mag
ned that / was on both sides at the
same time, and several fast teams were
HAiftuS USbAeSu. L ulcE aEOtler OOy,
who asked me why / looked so pale,
and I told him that | did not look
pale, but that he was pale himself.
After some further walking I sat down
under the bridge near my house and
began to reflect ON the prospect oil
early decease, and on the uncertainty
Of all earthly expectations. I had de.
.ermined to smoke the cigar all up.
aad thus get the full worth of my
money, but was finally obliged to throw
.hree-fourths of it away. / knew.
however, exactly where I threw it, in
case I should feel better the NEXT
day.
Getting home. the old people were
frightened, and demanded of me an
e~xplanation as to M absence and the
rather whitisb color of my complex.
ion. Not feeling that / was called
upon to go into particulars. and not
wishing to increase my parents appr.-
hension that was going to turn out
badly, / summed up the case with the
statement that / felt miserable at the
pit of my stomach. Mustard plasters
were Immediately administered. and l
received careful watching for some
hours. Finally l fell asleep, and for
got my humiliation and disappoint
ment in being obliged to throw aw AZ
.hree-fourths of my first cigar.-T. y
Wit Galnage ia Brook!yn Na9Ggins-